A judgment more severe than the previous one. The Versailles Court of Appeal (Yvelines) on Wednesday ordered Canal + to pay nearly 3.5 million euros to the former host of the Grand Journal, Maïtena Biraben, for having dismissed her in 2016 without “real cause” nor “serious”, according to a decision consulted on Thursday.
This judgment weighs down the one pronounced in September 2018 by the Labor Council of Boulogne-Billancourt (Hauts-de-Seine), which condemned the encrypted channel to compensate its former presenter to the tune of more than 3.4 million d ‘euros.
“The violence of what has been lived” again “recognized”
The Versailles Court of Appeal notably increased the amount of compensation due to Maïtena Biraben by 35,000 euros and ordered Canal + to pay her 30,000 euros in damages for non-pecuniary damage, bringing the total amount due to 3.48 million euros. euros approximately.
“I am, after five long and painful years of proceedings, very happy alongside my lawyer Maître Claire Fougea to see that the abusive nature of my eviction and the violence of what was experienced have been recognized once again”, said Maïtena Biraben.
Dismissed for “serious misconduct”
Last seen on LCP for his show Deconfined, Maïtena Biraben, 53, joined Canal + in 2004. She had agreed in 2015 to take control of the Large Journal, the channel’s flagship program, at the request of billionaire Vincent Bolloré, who had just taken control of Vivendi, the group’s parent company.
After sharp drops in audience, the journalist was dismissed from the show in the summer of 2016, after a single season, then dismissed for “serious misconduct”. She had claimed in front of the industrial tribunal 4 million euros from the chain. Solicited, Canal + did not follow up.